Pink

I know that you have seen it here before but I have been obsessively up cycling old packaging to store things in and also to contain gifts that I have been posting out. It all started with the flower pounding, and then the daffodil dye baths. The petal pulp that was left over from the pounding and dye baths were calling out to be used, so they decorated containers. Soon, flowers of any description were no longer safe. Its so addictive even my little girl has been having a go.

The boxes have mostly pink flowers attached, the red pink of the camellia, pink roses and carnations, deep cerise and pale purple pink of the giant daisy. They all dry out into a pale golden colour in the end. The rose looks particularly good, almost like a leaf skeleton.

The other day an old lady stopped me in the supermarket and asked me if I had heard the expression 'pink to make the boys wink'. She seemed lonely and in need of human contact so I stayed to talk a while. I told her about something I heard on the radio recently. Pink was once a colour worn by men. It could show status as achieving the colour was more difficult than other colours at the time. I don't know how true that it is but it made me think of the psychology of colour and that pink is on the spectrum of the power colour red. If it is true, it is now interesting that women wear pink and have more status than at any other time in history.

Please visit my friends at Theme Thursday to see their interpretations of pink.

Green

Theme Thursday - Bell

Distances

Swifts turn in the heights of the air;
higher still turn the invisible stars.
When day withdraws to the ends of the earth
their fires shine on a dark expanse of sand.

We live in a world of motion and distance.
The heart flies from tree to bird,
from bird to distant star,
from star to love; and love grows
in the quiet house, turning and working,
servant of thought, a lamp held in one hand.

~ Philippe Jaccottet ~

This week Theme Thursday's Theme is Bells.  I am a little early, c'est la vie!

I have always been an environmetalist at heart but not necessarily very good at it.  I am conscientious about what I do not buy, and try to recycle as much as I can.  Making the switch over from plastic bags at shops to canvas bags really made me notice how one action by one household can make such a difference.  The recent Indian Winter series of documentaries on the BBC  which focused on the slums of Mumbai and how entire families will work a whole day on the recycling dumps for the rest of the world, for a single meal  has driven it home to me that recycling really is not enough.   Most of these places do not have any sanitation or running water and infections are high.  The families working in these conditions would probably be better off in a sweat shop where at least they would take home a wage and have use of a bathroom. I am opposed to sweat shops and a supporter of 'worker behind the label'.

The connection to Bells is that my favourite objects to upcycle right now are whiskey boxes.  They have the best size and shape although I have been upcycling anything I can get my hands on from  cocoa tins to pringle tubes.  Often, I do these projects in front of the telly when I am too tired to make felt or read a book. I like to write poetry on some of these tubes.  Above you will see one of the tubes has been inscribed with the mesmorising verses of Philippe Jaccottet.  All in all, I don't worry too much about these projects being a piece of art.  Aesthetic is good enough for me.  I find the verse, colour and patterns that evolve  meditatitive.

To see other interpretations of this theme please visit my friends at Theme Thursday.

The Magic Mirror

I made this nuno felt scarf in response to Theme Thursday's prompt of Mirror.  The scarf is made from Merino, Alpaca and silk.  The centre of the scarf is a grassy knoll with a tree on it.  Initially, the tree was to be reflected in a lake which would act as the mirror but as the piece evolved  it became night and day, making the mirror a magical one that transports you from the everyday world to the magical moonlit sky to step out beneath an enchanted tree.  

Red

For more interpretations of the theme, go see my friends at Theme Thursday.

Theme Thursday - Felt

I was very excited and happy to see that the theme for Theme Thursday this week was FELT. Since Christmas, I have been experimenting with nuno felt which is a Japanese technique of laying down wool with silk and helping the wool fibres migrate through the silk so that the two bond and become one.

I think I will play with this piece a little more, maybe add a few beads to add to the feeling of luxury, and then send it to made4aid to help towards the relief funds in Haiti.

Happy Theme Thursday guys and thank you so much for choosing FELT x

Theme Thursday - Friends, & a Give Away...

Its Theme Thursday time again and this week its all about friends. Earlier today I visited Lettuce and was moved by her post explaining what blogging has come to mean to her. It mirrors so many of my own feelings about the circle of friends I have come to know and love within the blogging community. I have found friends here where I never expected to find any. I have been blessed with support, words of kindness and wisdom, inspiration and free tuition. I am so thankful for the things I have been able to learn from you all and the chain reaction of creativity that has been borne between the pages of your blogs.

I've been thinking for a while that I'd like to do a blog give away to thank you ll and by way of showing my appreciation to all of you. There are no rules to this give away. You don't have to follow my blog. You don't need to visit again. If this is your first visit here, don't let that prevent you from leaving a comment to enter this give away. All are welcome! I do have a cheeky (optional) incentive however :)) let me explain:

• Each person that leaves a comment will have one entry to the give away
• Each person that is a follower of made4aid, has a made4aid button on your blog or writes a post signposting your readers to made4aid will get an extra entry
• To clarify, if you leave a comment and are a follower of made4aid you have 2 entries, if you leave a comment, follow made4aid and have a made4aid link button on your side bar then you have 3 entries. If you have left a comment, follow made4aid, have a made4aid button and write a post, well then, you are super and I'll go right ahead and give you 5 entries!
• Remember, these are just incentives and not conditions. Leaving a comment alone will give you an entry

I will make the draw on 21/12/09 in celebration of the winter solstice. I will be giving away a felted scarf, scarfette or piece of jewelry (please state your preference and favourite colour). I will make the felt for the winner using the preferred colour scheme of the winner that can be tailored for gender too. I will post out the felt during the first days of January.

Ok, now thats enough of my shameless promotions. Its safe to keep reading future posts, I won't be bigging up any more charities for a while. There have been so many of late because I have a real bee in my bonnet about ethical spending at Christmas time. I hate to see people getting into debt, maxing the plastic and stressing over expensive presents that are often unwanted, unused and unloved. But we love our family an friends and love giving presents don't we?


The picture above was taken at Stonehenge this year during the Gorsedd of Bards of Cor Gawr midsummer gathering.

The Astrology of the Birth Chart and the Castle of the Psyche

Theme Thursday is all about castles this week. Castles can be historical, metophorical, psychological, mythalogical and even astrological.

This week I began an online 'Creative Astrology' workshop hosted by the amaizing artist Patricia Ariel of 'Mesmorized by the Sirens'. The workshop is based around our birthcharts and by the end of the 10 day course we should be able to produce our own personal mandala's which tap into our creative energies using the ancient art of astrology.

So far we have discussed the historic and psychological connections to astrology. I have learned that Jung and other psychologists incorporated astrology in helping clients understand the positive aspects of their personalities and to build on them. I have learned how astrology is used as a tool in assisting self actualisation.

Coming from the helping professions and having studied counselling I was fascinated to hear psychological and counselling terminology being used in reference to astrology. I had never considered astrology in this way before. Eager to find out more, I searched the web and came across an essay 'The Astrology of the Birth Chart and The Castle of the Psyche'. In brief, this essay discusses the theories of Jung and Hamaker-Zondag by metophirically likening the midheaven position of the birth chart to a castle standard. It discusses how the standard (flag) helps those apoproaching the castle decide whether you are friend or foe and if they should proceed or turn back. The essay discusses how judgements have already been made and opinions formed before the oncomer ever reaches the castle (self) and this influences relationships. The castle standard represents the Jungian concept of the 'social persona', the reputation. The social persona protects the inner 'psyche' showing the world what we want it to see.

It is interesting to see how well this is acheived. Do others regard us in the same light that we regard ourselves? Does the way that we regard ourselves reflect the true self?

Yesterday, I was presented with my birth chart. I don't really understand it so will spend some time this evening coming to terms with it and learning what the symbols and positions relate to. Before I understand these symbols, I thought it would be intersting to create a pseudo mandala incorporating symbols that I connect with myself and that astrology has given me to see how it compares to my birth chart.


If your home is your castle and home is where the heart is, my home and castle is under the canopy of an ancient tree in a wildflower meadow. Below is a painting I began in the summer while my friend was visiting from Seattle. Painting and drawing have never been strengths of mine but I have enjoyed making this painting and the mandala above.

To see some beautiful Goddess and fantasy artwork please visit Patricia Ariel at 'mesmorized by the sirens'. Thank you.

Traffic - another work in progress

It's Theme Thursday time again. I started this project a few days ago with high hopes of completing it for today. A traffic jam of herded sheep seemed perfect for todays theme. But I've got a nasty flu, might even be that killer 'Man flu' I've heard so much about, I'm sure it must be deadlier for us women :)

So I'm afraid a work in progress is all I can show as I haven't been able to muster up any energy for felting the past day or two. Sorry its not much of a offering.

Climate Change

I made this felt picture today in response to Theme Thursday's Blog Action theme of Climate Change. You can't see it on this photo, but the picture is set inside a circle which in turn is inside a square. The circle and the square intertwine like knot work. The circle and square were made with wool that had been dyed in nettles. Assayya recently wrote:

The stinging nettle grows in places where the harmony and balance in the soil is disturbed. He purifies as it were the soil to which plants can grow again, who first disappeared. That makes the energy of the nettle in the emotional sphere. It purifies and makes the atmosphere back into balance from a give and take.

Using nettle dyed wool to encircle this picture seemed both symbolic that the earth is out of balance, but with acknowledging that we can each try to do our bit to restore that balance.

The heart of the picture depicts the earth, the sky and the sea. Each of which are effected by climate change. In the spirit of optimism I have also made a ship donning a Greenpeace flag :)

The above pictures are images from Greenpeace campaigns.

This picture was posted on Dot World.
It's not about Climate Change but it does say it all!

Theme Thursday - Collection

I love music. All kinds of music, except maybe some disco and contrived bands, Simon Cowell, Stock Aitken and Waterman style. I have a deep respect for poetic or meaningful lyrics. I love to hear a song sang well, an instrument mastered. I even like bands that are not that musically good but have a passionate feel good factor that prevents me from subduing a smile or tapping a foot.

Most of my friends are musicians.

I collect unusual instruments. Or rather, maybe I should say, I used to buy them as gifts for my dad and coveted them... I now buy them for my 3 year old daughter who is naturally drawn to anything capable of noise.

I have carried instruments that I don't know the names of from one continent to another. Instruments from Chang Mai that had crossed the borders from Laos. I would be stopped in the street by Thai folk beaming from ear to ear looking with a recognition and love of a rarity seldom seen.

These things I have bought for my dad. I once bought him a Cora. An African stringed/percussion instrument originating from an Island near Ghana. Plays like a harp and beats like drum. Its hard to explain.

My daughter has rain sticks, shaky things, nutshells on sticks, painted gourds, xylophones, recorders, harmonica's, and so much more. She has a drum kit, guitar, microphone, keyboard, steel drum... And yes, she loves and uses each one. She could even blow a hunting horn at 18 months.

On Monday, I went to see my grandfather sing in his Barbershop Band. He sings lead and at times Baritone. I had to blink back tears it was so beautiful. All of those men, tenor, lead, baritone and bass. Friends in Harmony. Complimenting each other beautifully. It made me think of my grandmother who died nigh on 20 years ago. She sang the songs that they sang, perfectly. The style may be dated but wow, we cant let this tradition fade. The group sang many semi-modern songs, such as Unchained Melody, a selection of Beatles, Lean on Me, Always look on the bright side of Life. But my favourite were the older nostalgic songs.

My granddad is the handsome chap in the centre

Tonight, we went to see some of the Barbershop members rehearse their Skiffle Band. A delight of folk songs sang and played with tea chest bass, kazoo's, tin whistles, guitar, harmonica and more. Old songs such as 'My old man's a dustman', 'Put a log on the fire', 'You are my sunshine'. There is something wonderful about seeing passionate people having fun and expressing themselves in a way that brings cheer to the hearts and ears of those they encounter.

There is always time for fun.

Flight - When in Wales...

Butterflies, you've got to love them. There are four main stages before they are capable of 'FLIGHT'. Egg, Caterpillar, Chrysalis and Butterfly (aka Pili). Here are some pictures taken at Pili Palas earlier today.

Caterpillar

These caterpillars can be found all over Anglesey right now. They are really long (around 10cm) and live next to the Heather and Ragwort.

Chrysalis

Butterflies

Y Ddeilen Ffug - Indian Leaf - Kallima Inachus


Y Flamgoronog - Caroni Flambeau - Dryadula Phaetusa

Morpho Glas - Blue Morpho - Morpho Peleides

Y Mormon Mawr - Great Mormon - Papilio Memnon M

Ysbryd y Nos - White Tree Nymph - Idea Ieuconoe

Y Postmon - Postman - Heliconius Melpomene

Pala Esgyll Gwyrdd - Green-Banded Swallowtail - Papilio Palinurus

Gloyn Llygeidiog - Owl - Caligo Euroilochus &
Teigr Brown - Plain Tiger - Danaus Chrysippus


Pala Esgyll Gwyrdd - Green-Banded Swallowtail - Papilio Palinurus